On the go and no time to finish that story right now? Your News is the place for you to save content to read later from any device. Register with us and content you save will appear here so you can access them to read later.

It was always about becoming the architects of their Final Four ambitions and the Hawks didn't stray from coach Zico Coronel's blueprint in Napier tonight.

Captain Jarrod Kenny, claiming the player of the match honours, led the Taylor Corporation-sponsored Hawke's Bay to a composed 84-78 victory against the Wheeler Motor Canterbury Rams at the Pettigrew-Green Arena, Taradale, in week 12 of the Sal's Pizza National Basketball League match.

"It shows a lot of good signs for our team because obviously it was must-win game for us which gives us the split on Canterbury," said Australian import Angus Brandt in a game where the physicality stakes didn't boil over as it did in Christchurch.

Brandt said he found the physicality in the NBL here tough at first but was slowly becoming accustomed to it.

"I'm used to it now so there's no surprises there," he said after returning from Boomers' international duty in the Philippines where the game has come under scrutiny and Fiba's ruling is pending next week.

The centre, who cannot talk about the international game, revealed he struggled with the officiating in the NBL here in his debut season.

"The refs put away the whistle for a lot of physical stuff, which is fine, but I've just got adjust to it," he said. "I think I'm doing a better job now that I'm back."

Brandt said the Hawks had improved so much because only a month ago to close out a game like tonight wasn't easy with all the runs and ebbs and flows.

He felt the win tonight would make their run to the playoffs early next month much easier but resting on their laurels wasn't an option.

'We have to go out next weekend to make sure we get the job done because we have a double header so we basically need to win to get there so we can rest."

Brandt singled out bench player Hyrum Harris in a game where he felt everyone stepped to make a contribution.

"Dion [Prewster] came in with big guns, JK [Kenny] came in big but Hyrum, I thought, had a great game off the bench and Jamie [Skeen] was doing good things so collectively it was a great team effort and win.

"It shows how far we've come towards the end of the season and, hopefully, towards the playoffs."

The Hawks started with some zest and intent from the tip-off, something that wasn't a given in their previous two games at home, on the platform of solid defence.

They set the pace but the Rams levelled with two minutes on the clock before pushing ahead from the charity line and a three-pointer from US import Julian Williams-Washburn to close the account in the visitors' favour, 22-18, in the first quarter.